There are a lot of elements to a musical piece, regardless of genre. So if someone says not metal enough, ask them exactly why. Maybe they’re right, or maybe they’re wrong. But calling them gatekeepers without discussing composition, arrangement, thematic elements etc. doesn’t help maintain genre quality in the long run. If they’re using 1 or 2 favorite bands as a barometer, then that’s just stupid.
I often asked them. Things often brought up were use of guitar effects, no guitar solos, wrong type of vocals (with rapping was the most criticized back in my days, nowadays it’s harsh vs. clean vocals mainly), being popular, making more money from merchs/endorsements than record sales, and my personal favorite: not understanding music theory and how music is played so much you think only losers play power chords in the genre dominated by power chords.
There are a lot of elements to a musical piece, regardless of genre. So if someone says not metal enough, ask them exactly why. Maybe they’re right, or maybe they’re wrong. But calling them gatekeepers without discussing composition, arrangement, thematic elements etc. doesn’t help maintain genre quality in the long run. If they’re using 1 or 2 favorite bands as a barometer, then that’s just stupid.
I often asked them. Things often brought up were use of guitar effects, no guitar solos, wrong type of vocals (with rapping was the most criticized back in my days, nowadays it’s harsh vs. clean vocals mainly), being popular, making more money from merchs/endorsements than record sales, and my personal favorite: not understanding music theory and how music is played so much you think only losers play power chords in the genre dominated by power chords.